2012 US Open Cup Semifinal pairings and host scenarios announced

The United States Soccer Federation announced the pairings and host scenarios for the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Semifinals set for July 10 or 11, two weeks following the conclusion of the Quarterfinals June 26 featuring five Major League Soccer teams and three sides from the third division USL Pro.

Among the three lower division sides, the Harrisburg City Islanders are the only club that could potentially host a semifinal contest. To do so, both they are league compatriot Dayton Dutch Lions would have to register upset victories over the Philadelphia Union and Sporting Kansas City. Otherwise, the Philadelphia Union are set to host the semifinal, playing Dayton July 10 or Kansas City July 11.

The other pairing is much simpler scenario with the winner of the quarterfinal meeting between the Seattle Sounders and San Jose Earthquakes playing host to either Chivas USA or the lower division Charlotte Eagles, who have already won three times in Texas and are now making a cross-country trip to Los Angeles.

In the article above there is a link to a detailed explanation of how the hosting process is determined for 2012, and within that article there is a link to the detailed explanation of how the ‘secret bidding process’ works. The short version is that currently the hosts for the Semifinals and Final are determined by a secret bidding process where each team writes a check to the US Soccer Federation and the team that bids the most (assuming their stadium meets minimum standards), gets the game. The potential hosts for the Final will be announced by USSF after the deadline for bids passes on July 3.